Latest data released by Markit - 1 September 2020
- Prior 51.9
Italian factory activity grows for a second month in August - fastest rate in over two years - as hopes for a stronger economic rebound grows further. But with a possible resurgence in virus cases across the region, that may temper with optimism moving forward.
Not to mention the fact that export demand continues to remain highly subdued.
Markit notes that:
"Manufacturing conditions across Italy continued to improve during August, with the headline PMI the highest since June 2018.
"Both output and new orders rose at the quickest rate for over two-and-a-half years, with panellists reporting a revival in domestic demand. Foreign demand remained muted, however, with new export orders falling again.
"Job cuts appear to be winding down, as the rate of job shedding was the slowest since January and mild, with only limited mentions of redundancies and shorter working hours. Improved sales and hopes of a swift recovery fuelled firms' confidence, with output expectations the strongest on record.
"Overall, August data provided some very encouraging signs for Italian goods producers, with indications that a recovery from the worst effects of the pandemic is now well underway. However, export orders remain a key drag, and with employment still falling, domestic demand on its own is unlikely to provide enough momentum to really drive the recovery."
